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Hyleoides concinna
About 18mm long. Slow-flying.
Resting temporarily in some narrow-leafed ti-tree species (Leptospermum sp?) Within a local nature reserve.
Yet another spectacular creature discovered during James Cook's 1770 voyage which has impressed (and confounded) biologists since.
To make their brood cells these bees utilise bore holes created by other creatures (like longicorn beetles and cossid moths) and spin a curtain doorway that has a slit in the centre.
family: COLLETIDAE
subfamily: HYLAEINAE
Distribution http://spatial.ala.org.au/?q=lsid:%22urn...
Thanks to Stephen Thorpe and John La Salle for direction.
Also see http://www.aussiebee.com.au/hyleoides_co...
http://bie.ala.org.au/species/urn:lsid:b...
Very good spotting all-round, Mark. Great photos, background information and discussion.
Thanks again guys.. hoping we can live with H concinna. ( I could find another H similar )
Excellent info gents !! I've been very suspicious about this one. Thank you both. Sorry about the lack of shot options. They don't always cooperate as you well know.
Almost certainly Hyleoides sp. (the fore wing shading is distinctive). Pity we don't have a frontal shot of the face
Pronotum is wrong for Vespidae.
Makes it either some type of bee, or in the Sphecoidea (Sphecidae or Crabronidae).
Spotted on Mar 1, 2014
Submitted on Mar 1, 2014
